Beijing municipal deputy mayor Li Shixiang, also a deputy to the nation's top legislature, revealed the figure during a group discussion at the ongoing¹ "two sessions". It is the first time that the Chinese capital put forward a new target after its population grew much faster than expected. 

 

In 2005, the State Council, or China's cabinet, set the goal of having a total of 18 million people for Beijing in 2020. 

 

Currently, the city's population has surged to 21.54 million and the city will allow a small rise to no more than 21.8 million by the end of the year. 

 

The targeted population of 23 million was calculated based on the capability² of the city's water resources to support its residents, according to the deputy mayor, as the South-to-North Water Diversion project has not brought a fundamental change to improve the water shortage situation. 

 

Overcrowding has exacerbated³ the city's traffic and environmental problems. 

 

Premier⁴ Li Keqiang said in his report on the work of the government that the fight against "urban diseases", such as air pollution and traffic congestion⁵, must be stepped up to improve people's living standards. 

 

From 2014, the city began to relocate some of the businessmen in the wholesale⁶ markets near Dahongmen and Beijing Zoo to nearby cities in its neighboring Hebei province. 

 

In the future, Beijing will continue to relocate industries viewed as unhealthy to its development and focus on its role as the country's capital, the vice-mayor said. 

 

The city also plans to control its average level of PM2.5 at 60 micrograms in one cubic meter of air. 

 

Li said further efforts are needed to advance the coordinated⁷ development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area.

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